Linfield vs Rosenborg Predictions

Linfield claimed the title in Northern Ireland last season and during pre-season tested themselves with friendlies against Dinamo Bucureşti, Motherwell, and St. Johnstone, all of which ended in defeat. Visiting Rosenborg are right in the middle of their 2019 Elitserien season, but after winning the league and qualifying for the Champions League last time out, the Norwegians are lingering in mid-table and don’t look likely to put in much of a defence to their crown.

Linfield scored their first goals of pre-season at the weekend when they played host to St. Johnstone of the Scottish Premiership, but ended up losing the game 4-2 and only had 40% of the overall possession. Rosenborg and Ranheim played out a five-goal thriller in the Eliteserien last time out, where the visitors took the lead three times before securing all three points. Adegbenro put Rosenborg 1-0 up in the twenty-seventh minute but an equaliser shortly before the break saw the teams go in level at the EXTRA Arena. Akintola restored Rosenborg’s lead early in the second half but when Ranheim equalised with five minutes left on the clock, it looked like the game would end all square. However, an eighty-eight-minute effort from Søderlund saw the visitors pinch all three points, when perhaps a draw would have been the fairest result on the balance of play.

The head to head record between these two clubs and each team’s form and performances over the last month or so all points towards a win to nil for Rosenborg on Wednesday. Rosenborg remain unbeaten against Linfield with one win and one draw from their two previous encounters, Linfield have never scored against Rosenborg before, and the visitors have scored an average of one goal a game against Wednesday’s hosts. Linfield have lost four of their last six matches, while Rosenborg have won four of their last six. The hosts have failed to score in three of their last six matches, while their guests have kept two clean sheets in their last three home games, which is why we’re backing Rosenborg to claim a narrow 1-0 win on Wednesday.

Jensen and Søderlund have both scored three times in the league for Rosenborg this season, while Adegbenro, Akintola, and de Lanlay have all chipped in with two Eliteserien goals each. Andrew Waterworth finished third in the Irish Premiership top scorer’s chart last season with seventeen goals and presents the hosts most likely source of goals on Wednesday night. We’re confident that Rosenborg will win to nil on Wednesday and have predicted a final scoreline of 1-0. The visitors are yet to lose or concede a goal against their hosts and have the advantage of being in the middle of their domestic campaign, while Linfield are still in pre-season and might not be at full fitness and be lacking match practice.